"Il n'y avait aucun biscuit à la vanille."

Translation:There weren't any vanilla cookies.

July 1, 2020

9 Comments
This discussion is locked.


https://www.duolingo.com/profile/Shakara.Kiing

Consistency will help a whole lot, in not confusing and/or discouraging new learners, Duo.

You tell me "Il n'y a aucune sucrerie chez mes parents" translates to "There aren't any sweets at my parents'" (utterly refuse the translation of "There isn't a single sweet at my parents'") YET you don't let me translate "Il n'y avait aucun biscuit à la vanille" to "There wasn't any vanilla cookie", and insist the correct translation is "There wasn't a single vanilla cookie".

Deep sigh


https://www.duolingo.com/profile/lulularosa

If you use that form in English, you must use the plural: "There weren't any vanilla cookies".

If you want to use the singular: "There wasn't a (single) vanilla cookie".


https://www.duolingo.com/profile/origina

agree, very annoying


https://www.duolingo.com/profile/IsuwaAtsen

You're absolutely right!


https://www.duolingo.com/profile/miles-miles

I was looking for something like "There weren't any vanilla cookies" and missed "single." Guess aucune is just hard to translate sometimes


https://www.duolingo.com/profile/--Roody--

I know. You have to put in the idea that it's stronger than a routine negation. In the real world, English speakers might accomplish this added emphasis with stress and accent. But for writing you have to use additional words like "not a single cookie". A common emphatic phrase is " not even one cookie" or "not even one little cookie."


https://www.duolingo.com/profile/Sally974303

These translations are ridiculous and WRONG. I am going to stop Duolingo after 2 years because I really have had enough of being marked wrong erroneously by a computer that can’t speak English OR French.


https://www.duolingo.com/profile/ArnoldCohe1

the varied and, to an English speaker, sometimes awkward translations/uses of aucun are very difficult for me!

Learn French in just 5 minutes a day. For free.